Govt: Avoid going to flu-hit areas

Star: KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Mi­­nistry has advised Malaysians against travelling to certain places in the United States, Canada and Mexico where there are reports of swine flu cases.
Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the ministry was also considering the possibility of giving pig farmers and personnel from frontliner agencies such as nurses, doctors and the police the vaccine to protect them against any infection.
Also, thermal scanners would be placed at international airports to speed up the screening process for swine flu, he said, adding that they would be set up within three days.
Seven new scanners, which would enable mass screening of passengers, would be procured, Liow said, adding that the old ones used during the bird flu outbreak and SARS only allowed for single screenings.
He said that as of Sunday the United States had recorded 20 cases of influenza-like illnesses with eight reported in New York, seven in California, two each in Texas and Kansas, and one in Ohio.
Mexico has reported 1,149 cases with 71 deaths, of which 18 cases were confirmed to have been caused by the swine influenza A/H1N1 virus.
“Canada has reported four swine flu cases. So far, no deaths have been reported in Canada and the United States,” said Liow.
“No cases have been reported in Malaysia. Although the World Health Organisation (WHO) has not called for any health sanction in travel or trade with those affected countries.
“I would like to advise all Malay­sians against travelling to these places,” Liow told reporters here yesterday.
He said the ministry had also alerted both public and private medical practitioners to report to the district health office any patient with influenza-like illnesses or severe pneumonia symptoms and who had travelled to these places after April 17.
On the screening of passengers, Liow said medical personnel at the airports yesterday began checking each passenger’s body temperature manually at all entry points.
“With the new scanners, all passengers will only have to walk through it and their body temperature will be recorded,” he told reporters after visiting the screening area at the KL International Airport yesterday.
The airport has designated a place at the arrival hall to screen all passengers travelling from Mexico, Canada and the United States.
Liow said that, for the time being, compulsory screening was only conducted on passengers and crews travelling from Latin America countries. Others only needed to fill a Health Declaration Form about their health status for the past 10 days.
Penang has also opened an operations room at Komtar to coordinate and update information on the swine flu. State Health, Welfare and Caring Society Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh said the public could contact the personnel there by calling 04-262 9902.